About Me

Born in the late 60's, Chesy hails from a Welsh mining village with a long name and was pretty glad when he got the Hell out of there. He got into Rock/Metal in about 1980, thanks to a TISWAS related incident (Rainbow video for All Night Long) and thankfully has never looked back.
Chesy often sang solo in the school choir, but thanks to a puberty related incident his voice is now completely bolloxed, although in his own head Paul thinks he sounds like a blend of Coverdale and Dio (R.I.P).
He was brought up on the classics - Deep Purple, Rainbow, Thin Lizzy, Rush, Whitesnake and loved melodic rock and the Hair Bands of the 80's. (Nowadays, he has progressed a little and prefers a more technical and/or progressive metal - Dream Theater, Rush, Symphony X, Porcupine Tree, Pain Of Salvation, Spock's Beard. He hates Black and Death Metal (can't stand the grunting) but for some unknown reason loves the magnificent Opeth! He wont stop this blog until his beloved FM finally play the likes of the NEC as a headlining act!!!

Sunday, 16 August 2015

Spocks Beard - 'The Oblivion Particle' Album Review

There was a time,
when I used to think that Spocks Beard were the Bees Knees, The Mutts Nutts,
The Badgers Nadgers, The Cats Whiskers etc., (check local listings for
appropriate slang version).I was a
convert up to the fifth album, aptly titled, er, ‘V’. Then ‘Snow’ came along
and it just put me right off as it seemed a test for even the most hardened SB
fan.I was pleased that they had a ready
made vocalist in Nick D’Virgilio, and I still persevered, but losing Morse to
God became a huge hole (and shoes to fill). Neal Morse has had a hand in co
writing songs on the last couple of albums, which also got the SB fans juices
flowing. After D’Virgilio bailed in 2011 I thought it truly was the end for
them. Thankfully, in came Ted Leonard (Enchant), a singer who has given Spocks
Beard a refreshed dimension

According to bassist Dave Meros, it’s not a matter of how much
the album recalls past Spock’s material, but how much it differs. “I think the
opening track 'Tides of Time' is classic Spock's in terms of arrangement and
style, but everything else is fairly different. That said, the whole album is
still within the parameters of what people expect to hear from us.”

The Oblivion Particle finds the band answering the needs of their
creations by utilizing the considerable versatility of each member. In addition
to Ted Leonard's soaring vocals and Dave Meros' distinctive bass, Alan Morse
adds autoharp, banjolele, electric sitar and mandolin to his array of
instruments, drummer Jimmy Keegan takes over lead vocals on “Bennett Built a
Time Machine” and Ryo expands his arsenal of keyboard sounds throughout the
album. In addition, virtuoso Kansas violinist David Ragsdale lends his touch to
the album’s majestic closer, “Disappear.” Basically, there is probably nothing
that SB cant play with this line up. Throw in Leonard’s guitar live and they
are the prog Iron Maiden!

Opening track ‘Tides Of Time’ is unmistakably and categorically
the ‘classic’ Spocks Beard sound. A song in structure that takes you right back
to the heady days of their golden period in the late 90s. So, all is not lost
then. Morse (N) was a part of this unmistakable sound, but Leonard has
definitely made the position his own. Ryo’s keyboards/synths entwine
majestically with Alan Morse’s guitar, creating a

musical tapestry of sound.
The tone rises and falls, building with each phase. This is Spocks beard on top
form ladies and gentlemen.‘Minion’ https://youtu.be/QiUisFo1bz4kicks off with Leonards soaring vocals, very much akin
to Kansas and ‘COWS’. If there is such a thing in prog as a ballad, then
‘Hell’s Not Enough’ is as close as you’ll come to one. ‘Bennett Built A Time
Machine’ is as you would expect a time travel tale with some mighty fine
details from another singing drummer, Jimmy Keegan. Our hero of the tale,
Bennett, goes back to ‘change his choices, guided by his inner voices’ to New
York, 1983. Once halfway, ‘BBATM’ builds into something that only SB seem
capable to achieving. Its more pop than prog, and will likely piss off the
naysayers, but its cracking stuff. By now, Spocks Beard are now on a roll….

Get Out While You Can is ‘a single’ by SB standards, clocking in at just
under 5 mins. It has an end of the world feeling to it, with its ominous tone.
‘Get out while you can’ wails Leonard ‘Judgment day is here’. For the latter
half of the album, SB set the dials firmly to ‘prog’. This is what Spocks Beard
can do, they stretch the listener, take them on a long and fascinating journey.
Its not comfortable, nor should it be. There’s some challenging moments, but if
you stick with them then there are rewards to be gained. The boys collectively
pull out all the stops, bringing all the musical tools out of the shed, especially
hard on ‘The Center Line’. ‘To Be Free Again’ at ten-and-a-half minutes, oscillates
from mellow, to chunky riffs, and atmospheric. It’s certainly the most cinematic
song on the album. For the finale ‘Disappear’, Spocks Beard wheel out Kansas’
violinist David Ragsdale. At 66minutes, TOB glides along like a knife
through butter.

The Oblivion
Particle, like Bennetts Time Machine employed, sees them plying some of the
best of their past along with the current tone, and hopefully showing glimpses
of whats to come in their future. Long may they continue to push the boundaries
for another 20 years.